1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to prosthetic implants and, in particular, to prosthetic implants having a thermally treated ceramic coating and to a method of producing a coated prosthetic implant.
2. Description of the Related Art
Prosthetic implants are utilized to repair and/or replace damaged bone and tissue in the human body. For example, a prosthetic knee may be implanted to replace a damaged knee joint formed between a femur and a tibia. The prosthetic knee may include a femoral component and/or a tibial component.
The femoral component may be shaped to replicate one or both of the natural femoral condyles. One side of the femoral component is secured to a resected distal femur and the opposing side of the femoral component is configured to articulate against the tibial component or the natural tibia. The femoral component may be formed entirely of a rigid metal, such as a cobalt-chromium-molybdenum (CoCrMo) alloy, to withstand the load patterns of the knee joint.
The tibial component may include a tibial articulating component and a tibial tray component. The tibial articulating component may be concave in shape to receive natural or prosthetic femoral condyles. The tibial tray component is secured to a resected proximal tibia. The tibial articulating component may be formed of a polymer to facilitate articulation with the femoral component or the natural femur, while the tibial tray component may be formed of a metal to provide strength and rigidity to the tibial component of the prosthetic knee.
In use, the metallic femoral component may articulate against the polymeric tibial component to replicate the natural, anatomical articulation of the knee joint.